Top 7 Tips To Treat And Prevent Sciatica

It is pain in the butt quite literally. It can also be a pain in the hip, the thigh, the lower leg, or even the foot. In fact, the condition known as sciatica can send pain shooting anywhere in your lower body. What is causing all the commotion is the sciatic nerve, which is not one but a group of nerves bound together in a single sheath. The sciatica nerve runs from your lower back down each leg all the way to the foot. When it is injured, inflamed, or irritated, it can produce pain at any point or every point along its route. The most common cause of sciatica is a herniated disk. Disks separate the vertebrae in your spine. The result is excruciating pain. On rare occasions, sciatica can result from other health problems. Some are serious, such as diabetes, blood clots, and tumors. But others are minor. You can even get sciatic pain from sitting too long in an awkward position. So have your pain checked out before you proceed with self-care. Here are some tips that you can consider to adopt to relieve your pain.

In addition to pain, you may also experience: ???Numbness or muscle weakness along the nerve pathway in your leg or foot. In some cases, you may have pain in one part of your leg and numbness in another. ???Tingling or a pins-and-needles feeling. This occurs most commonly in your toes or part of your foot. ???A loss of bladder or bowel control. This is a sign of cauda equina syndrome, a rare but serious condition that requires emergency care. If you experience either of these symptoms, seek medical help immediately.

The sciatic nerve is located deep in the muscles of the buttocks, originating from the sacral plexus and running distally along the thigh with its branches to the shank and foot. It is an important nerve of the lower extremities, for both motor and sensory purposes.

Instructions 1. Lying: Lie supine in the bed with the legs bent. Without letting the feet leave the surface of the bed, straighten the legs one after the other. While they are stretched straight, lift the legs above the bed alternately. Lift the healthy leg to an angle of 90 degrees and the affected leg to an angle of 45 degrees at first. By practicing, the affected leg can be gradually lifted higher to form a perpendicular angle as well (see Fig. 1).

Sciatic pain usually starts in the buttocks and extends down the rear of the thigh and lower leg to the sole of the foot and along the outer side of the lower leg to the top of the foot. Pain may also be present in the lower back.

6. Write Your Own Prescription Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen remain the treatment of choice for sciatica. They can reduce any nerve inflammation caused by the pressure of a herniated disk. These medications won't cure your pain, but they will make it more tolerable.

Symptoms can vary from extreme pain in the low back radiating into one buttock and down the leg. Pain often increases on exertion or bending forward. Alternatively, there may only be a mild sensation in the leg or buttock. There may be numbness in the area, weakness in the leg and diminution of the reflexes. Pain may be triggered by coughing or straining and can be so severe that the lower back becomes locked in sideways bending position (scoliosis) caused by a strong contraction.

Causes The sciatic nerve is commonly injured by fractures of the pelvis, gunshot wounds, or other trauma to the buttocks or thigh. Prolonged sitting or lying with pressure on the buttocks may also injure it. Systemic diseases, such as diabetes, can typically damage many different nerves, including the sciatic nerve. The sciatic nerve may also be harmed by pressure from masses such as a tumor or abscess, or by bleeding in the pelvis.

The pain can vary widely, from a mild ache to a sharp, burning sensation or excruciating discomfort. Sometimes it may feel like a jolt or electric shock. Sciatic pain often starts gradually and intensifies over time. It's likely to be worse when you sit, cough or sneeze. Usually only one lower extremity is affected.

3. Go For Yoga Practicing certain yoga exercises can help ease sciatic pain. It is recommended to try out this exercise. Lie on your back with your claves resting on the seat of a chair. Your hips and knees should be bent at about 90-degrees angles. Cross your arms over your chest and place your hands on your shoulders, not on your neck. Inhale, then begin a long, slow exhalation. During the exhalation, tilt your pelvis so that your lower back moves to the floor as you flatten your abdomen. Raise your shoulders 6 to 10 inches off the ground. Lower your right shoulder to touch the floor. Repeat, this time lowering and raising your left shoulder instead. Do this five to six times per side.

Raymond Lee is one of the foremost experts in the health and fitness industry and is the Founder of Bodyfixes Group specializing in body health, muscle development and dieting. He is currently the author of the latest edition of "Neck Exercises and Workouts." Visit http://www.bodyfixes.com for more information.

What is Sciatica? The longest nerve in your body, the sciatic nerve runs from your pelvis through your hip area and buttocks and down each leg. It divides into the tibial and peroneal nerves at the level of your knees. The sciatic nerve controls many of the muscles in your lower legs and provides feeling to your thighs, legs and feet.

2. Don't Get Crossed You tend to cross the same leg all the time. That means you are always sitting on the same buttock, which puts a lot of pressure on the sciatic nerve on that side. Ideally, you should not cross your legs at all. But if you must, at least try to switch sides from time to time.

2. Sitting: Sit upright on a mat or on the floor with the legs straight in front, the feet flexed so that the heels touch the ground and the hands placed fiat on the

4. Take A Seat The Right Way When you do have to sit, make sure that your posture does not make your sciatica worse. Your knees and hips should be bent at about 90-degree angles. Your weight should be on the ischium tuberosity - the sitting bones - and not on the tailbone.

2. A Magnetic therapy pillow pad. If for any reason what so ever you cannot wear a back belt or support the only alternative is to use a pad placed under your back in bed at night. It can also be used during the day when sitting or lying down (even in the car). You will not have 24 hours 7 day a week exposure to the magnets but if you cannot wear a strap this is an acceptable alternative as long as it is used every might when the body is at its most receptive to magnetic healing.

Commonly the major cause can be pinned as disc herniation in the lumbar spine which presses directly on the sciatic nerve and any triggers by such a reaction for example by irritation of the nerve from adjacent bone which in turn produces the symptoms of sciatica. Besides a compressed or a pinched nerve, other causes could also be tumors, muscle, internal bleeding, infections, injury etc. thus sciatica is not really a disease by itself but rather many other dependants make it into a medical condition worthy of attention

To determine the cause is the most important thing in the treatment of sciatica. If the pain is caused by pressure from outside the nerve, the pressure should be relieved. If sciatica is the result of an inflammation, bed rest, analgesics, acupuncture and massage therapy are indicated. In chronic cases, the following system of physical therapy is advised.

When magnetic therapy is used in-conjunction with deep penetrating massage and cold/ice therapy, the symptoms of sciatica can be resolved in just a few days. Massage will relax the muscles that have gone into spasm around the trapped nerve, the cold or ice will help reduce the inflammation and heat around the injury and both of these will prepare the tissues and muscles, so that the magnetic field can penetrate more quickly into the damaged area. Massage and ice therapy can be used 3-4 times a day for approximately 10 minutes at a time.

"Hello, I got Sciatol for my husband. Three weeks later his back pain is almost gone. Sciatol works! I'm ordering a second bottle." Danna, OH

Symptoms The most common symptom of sciatica mimics the pain of a severe leg cramp. Depending on where damage to the nerve occurs, pain may be accompanied by numbness or tingling, a burning sensation or general weakness in the leg.

7. Give Your Legs A Lift Try to keep pressure off the lumbar region of your spine, from which most sciatica pain radiates. It is recommended lying on your back with your lower legs resting on a chair or a low table such as a coffee table. Your knees and hips should be bent at about 90-degree angles. Do this as needed for relief.

What are the signs and symptoms of Sciatica? Pain that radiates from your lower (lumbar) spine to your buttock and down the back of your leg is the hallmark of sciatica. You may feel the discomfort almost anywhere along the nerve pathway, but it's especially likely to follow one of these routes: ???From your lower back to your knee. ???From the mid buttock to the outside of your calf, the top of your foot and into the space between your last two toes. ???From the inside of your calf to your inner ankle and sole.

Sciatica refers to pain along the path of the sciatica nerve. It is usually caused by pressure on the sciatic nerve. Fortunately, most cases of sciatica are not serious and usually resolve within six weeks. The sciatic nerve branches off nerve roots at the lower end of the spinal cord - it's two branches run from the lower back through the each side of the pelvis, buttocks, back of leg to the foot.

There is a saying in China: "A door-hinge is never worm-eaten." It means that appropriate motion can prevent strain. Therefore, a sciatica patient should not keep motionless for fear of pain. Keeping motionless will aggravate the symptoms.

Magnetic therapy for sciatica. Sciatica can resolve by itself but this can take many weeks or even months. You can however quite rapidly reduce the symptoms of sciatica with magnets. As with all magnetic therapy treatments, the magnets have to be placed as close to the area of pain as possible, this will be the lower (lumbar) region of the back. Even though you may have pain down your legs or in your buttocks the cause is still in the lower back. When you treat the back area and the sciatica resolves then the pain running down the leg and buttocks will also dissipate.

Sciatica is a painful inflammation of the sciatic nerve, usually neuritis, but it may also result from pressure by tumor or inflammation of the neighboring bones, tendons or muscles, particularly by protruding intervertebral disc. In an acute case of protrusion of intervertebral disc, there is a cutting pain that radiates from the iliacsacral region to the foot, causing an inability to walk. When it becomes chronic, the patient will feel a dull stretching pain and have difficulty walking.

Debbie Shimadry is as an expert guest on magnetic therapy for BBC Radios and is also the managing director of leading magnetic therapy company worldofmagnets.co.uk. If you are interested in natural pain relief visit the magnetic article directory or the health reciprocal link exchange directory.

1. Adjust Your Seat Most people position the car seat too far back when they drive. You put a lot of strain on your back when you have to stretch to reach your pedals. You should be able to press the gas pedal just by flexing your ankle. Your hips should be at about 90-degree angle, and your back should be in neutral, not bent, not perfectly straight, but comfortable.

In chronic cases of sciatic neuritis, the pain is associated with adhesion around the nerve. "Lying, sitting and standing" is a great treatment for this condition, providing an opportunity to exercise the sciatic nerve by tightening and relaxing it and helping relieve adhesion and alleviate pain after repeated practice.

There are really only 2 magnetic therapy devices that are effective in treating sciatica: 1 .A magnetic therapy back strap or support. The functional straps and supports can be placed directly over the area of pain. If the sciatica is very low in the back then a narrow strap will be more practical and altogether more comfortable than a wide support, as it fits snugly around the hip area and will stay over the compressed nerve. A wider support is effective if the sciatic pain is higher and nearer to the waist area. As with all magnets the straps/supports need to be worn for 24 hours and 7 days a week until the pain has gone.

The term sciatica refers to pain that radiates along the path of this nerve, from your back into your buttock and leg. The discomfort can range from mild to incapacitating, and may be accompanied by tingling, numbness or muscle weakness. Rather than a disorder in and of itself sciatica is a symptom of another problem that puts pressure on the nerve.

5. Flex Your Pelvis Pelvic tilts allow you to gently move the lumbar region of your spine, increasing circulation in the area. It is recommended to follow these instructions. Lie on your back with your feet on the floor and your knees bent. Tilt your pelvis so that your back flattens against the ground, then lift it up. Hold for 5 seconds and relax. Continue tilting and lifting and relaxing five to six times every hour when sciatica flares up.

Sciatica refers to pain that begins in the hip and buttocks and continues all the way down the leg. This condition is often accompanied by low back pain, which can be more or less severe than the leg pain. The term "sciatica" indicates that the sciatic nerve, which travels from the lower back through the buttocks and into the leg, is thought to be the cause of the pain in this condition. True sciatica is a condition that occurs when a herniated lumbar disc compresses one of the contributing roots of the sciatic nerve. This type of low back pain is less common than other causes and conditions that produce back pain.

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